Media drying systems are known. For example, U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2003/0081097, published on May 1, 2003, discloses a heated media deflector for an inkjet printer. The media deflector is located in a transition area between a horizontal printing plane and a vertical feeding path. The media deflector includes a plastic support portion and a sheet metal portion with a heating resistor attached to a bottom surface of the sheet metal portion. The sheet metal portion provides a guiding surface for guiding a media from a printing zone to the vertical feeding path. The sheet metal portion of the heated media deflector also radiates heat that dries excess water absorbed by the media during printing. The inkjet printer includes a controller for controlling the heating temperature of the heated media deflector. The heating temperature is set based on environmental conditions and print job parameters.
Additionally, U.S. Pat. No. 5,005,025, issued to Miyakawa et al. on Apr. 2, 1991, discloses an ink jet recording apparatus that fixes ink through evaporation of a solvent portion of ink printed onto a recording element. The apparatus includes a recording head for ejecting ink onto the recording element. The recording head is positioned in a recording area of the apparatus. A heating member extends in an upstream and downstream direction relative to the recording area and contacts the recording element to assist in the fixation of the ink. The apparatus also includes a press plate disposed upstream of the recording area that presses the recording element against the heating member. The press plate has a portion opposed to the heating member and a plurality of slits spaced apart from each other in a direction perpendicular to a recording element travel direction.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,308,626, issued to Crystal et al. on Oct. 30, 2001, discloses a wide format thermal printing system providing directed fluid flow from specially-designed orifices which promote fluid flow on a printed surface of a recording media. One or more heating elements are inserted directly into the fluid flow promoting drying of the printed surface. The printing system includes a single dual duct plenum that spans the width of a roll-fed wide format ink jet print engine. A first duct of the dual duct plenum distributes heated air in a direction of media web movement while a second duct evacuates a printing area of any potentially harmful ink vapors or other air-borne contaminant to either a remote exhaust vent or vapor capture vessel.